Christopher R. Johnson is a seasoned trial lawyer.
Chris graduated in 1994 from Texas Christian University with honors and then graduated from Texas Tech University School of Law, also with honors, in 1999. From 1999 to 2000, he clerked for the Honorable Donald E. Walter, United States District Judge for the Western District of Louisiana.
Chris has been a litigator and trial lawyer for over 25 years, trying over two dozen trials to verdict, with many being multi-week civil jury trials throughout New Mexico. Chris began his career as a defense lawyer, and actively litigated civil rights and medical malpractice claims for several years.
This early experience defending hospitals and physicians gave Chris invaluable insight into how healthcare providers and their insurers approach medical malpractice cases—knowledge he now uses to advocate for injured patients.
In 2004, Chris began representing plaintiffs. He joined the nationally renowned firm of Nix, Patterson & Roach, L.L.P., where his practice initially focused on representing families in nursing home neglect and abuse cases across multiple states. Chris secured a number of significant victories at trial for injured clients and their families as lead trial counsel.
His practice later expanded to representing victims of insurance bad faith through nationwide class actions, where he was part of the NPR team that made billions of dollars available to victims of insurance claims underpayment schemes. Chris also served on a national steering committee of plaintiff’s counsel and managed and represented the interest of hundreds of clients in a large pharmaceutical mass tort action.
Prior to co-founding Coates & Johnson, Chris has spent the last several years as lead counsel representing individuals and families against Tobacco Companies in Massachusetts and New Mexico, handling multiple, multi-week jury trials against some of the best defense trial lawyers in the country, throughout New Mexico.
In 2026, Mr. Johnson co-founded Coates & Johnson with his friend and colleague, Dr. Greig Coates, returning his practice exclusively to medical malpractice litigation. At Coates & Johnson, Chris manages all aspects of case litigation—from discovery and depositions to motions practice and trial preparation.
Working alongside Dr. Coates’ unique combination of medical and legal expertise, Mr. Johnson ensures that every client receives direct, personal attention from two highly experienced attorneys from start to finish of their case. Like Dr. Coates, Chris practices solely medical malpractice litigation and only in New Mexico.